This application relates to batteries, and more particularly to a battery control circuit that controls whether battery cells are connected to each other.
Electrical batteries can be used to provide electrical power to devices within specific voltage and current ranges. Electrical batteries are composed of cells connected in series and/or in parallel. The individual cells of a battery provide a voltage which primarily depends on the chemicals composition of the cells. The design of a given cell limits the voltage and current that the cell is able to provide. Connecting additional cells in parallel increases the current output of a battery, and connecting additional cells in series increases a voltage output of a battery.
As battery cells become depleted, their output will decay. However, the rate of output decay may not be uniform among the cells. This can cause output from the stronger cells to go into the decayed cells rather than to powering a device, which occurs when cells are not close in voltage. This may result in damage to the decayed cells, reduced output from the battery, and/or early failure of the battery.